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president is on vacation in hawaii while the fiscal cliff creeps ever closer. will there be a big new years resolution? plus -- >> if it's crazy to call for putting police and armed security in our school to protect our children, then call me crazy. >> the head of the nra speaks out exclusively to nbc news intensifying the emotionally charged debate on gun control. it's monday, december 24th. welcome to this special edition of "m schsnb"msnbc." as for president obama and john boehner, they are miles apart. neither are them talking about the deal the country really

needs. kristin, we were talking yesterday that there's a possibility the president was considering coming back early perhaps thshould they strike a deal of some sort. >> i think it's likely president obama will cut his vacation short. we haven't gotten guidance about when that is going to happen. the white house is calling this a working vacation, but the reality is that talks are largely deadlocked over the fiscal cliff. there have been a few conversations going on at the staff level but really the expectation is that the hard work is going to get done when lawmakers return to washington after the christmas holiday, a little bit later on this week. that's when they're going to resume negotiations in earnest. of course there had been hopes that the president and house speaker john boehner were going to get a deal done. if you looked at the beginning of last week, they were getting close to a deal it appeared but that fell apart and talks fell apart. president obama said i will accept a smaller deal as long as it doesn't allow rates for those

to go up for those making $250,000 or less. over the weekend you had a few senators, including senator joe lieberman saying they believe now more than ever we may be getting closer to actually going over the fiscal cliff. that is of course hanging over the heads of a lot of americans as they enter this holiday season and also looming over this vacation the president is having. i'll give you a little sense of what president obama has been up to in hawaii. on saturday he played a round of golf with some of his closest friends and advisers and later in the day he went to dinner with the first lady and friends and on saturday he attended a memorial service for the late senator daniel inouye. in the past years the president and first lady have often around christmas taken time to visit with the troops. that is something that is certainly a possibility this

year and of course just spending some quality time together. >> and no doubt hitting some of their favorite eateries like the rainbow cafe and getting their kalu a pig. another big topic over the holiday weekend was gun control. wayne lapierre was offered the opportunity to soften his message during an exclusive interview with nbc's david gregory. take a listen. >> is the assault weapon ban going to snas. >> i think that is a phony piece of legislation. >> pete, when we look at this, what are the next steps for the nra based on what we heard yesterday and for that matter the opponents that are eager at the moment for some enough gun legislation? >> well, when the new congress

screens, we know at least couple of democrats will introduce gun control legislation to try to reinstate the assault weapons ban that ran from 1994 to 2004 and a similar restriction on high capacity magazine clips, probably defined as any clip or magazine that can hold more than ten rounds. the nra will oppose that. they said they favor lots of things to try to get at the violence of schools, more armed guards with guns at schools, a look at the culture of violence, that president obama grease with, better records in the instant check system of those adjudged to be mentally defective, that's the term in the law. they favor all those things except restrictions on gun, the nra does. there will be a big lobbying battle in congress when this begins to move. >> when we look back at 2008 and the court decision at that time regarding washington, d.c.'s gun control law, how might that decision come into play if at

all. >> it's going to in some way. in a very narrow sense what the supreme court decision stands for is a very important thing. for the first time in american history the supreme court defined the second amendment. it said it does apply to an individual right to own a gun but it stands only for the constitutional right to possess a handgun in the home for self-defense. it doesn't say anything about guns on the streets, although other lower courts are beginning to chew on that question and it may be coming to the supreme court. but in general gun legislation has pretty much withstood the supreme court decision. it says possession by certain can be banned, it's not a get out of jail free card for anybody who opposes gun legislation. >> pete williams, thank you so much for that perspective for us there in washington, d.c. >> let's bring in our panel to talk more about the politics of this heated debate. jake, start with you.

you work on the hill and the question now is is there 60 votes in the senate, there are 218 votes in the house for gun control legislation to get passed? >> i think before you start count being the votes you have to consider whether speaker john boehner will even bring this to the floor. he was asked last week if he supports gun control measures, he said he was very noncommittal, he said he'll look at anything but speaker john boehner and house republicans are not likely to bring this to the floor in the way that president obama wants. they do not boy biand large favor an assault weapons ban but it's absolutely going to be a huge fight going forward. >> it it makes it to the floor? >> i don't think it will make it. i think the house republicans, there are not 218 votes as congress stands right now and if president obama wants to engage congress on this, it will be an uphill battle for him. >> let's listen to chuck schumer responding to wayne lapierre's comments on the press. >> i think he's so extreme and

so tone deaf that he actually helps the cause of us passing sensible gun legislation in the congress. >> friday's comments, yesterday's interview, what's your thought here? was he handling the sensitivity properly here? >> when the nra entered the fray on friday, they introduced a different topic into the conversation we'd been talking a lot about gun control, mental health issues and here we have a new topic of arming more people in schools. so i think this might be a more divisive part of the conversation and kind of might rile up some democrats to be opposing them. >> jake, you know, lapierre was very clear in his messaging over the weekend as well as on friday and kaitlin was making one note of that. who is he trying to convince right now and is he the right

personing to carrying the message right now coming from the nra? >> i think you've seen a backlash of sorts, even from the right, people who think his message was a little bit off, but going forward the nra is going to be hugely influential as thee bills start making their way to the floor. i actually do believe in the senate these bills stand a chance, you've seen a lot more support in the senate. harry reid is a democrat and supports the president's agenda, although he's been a staunch supporter of the nra in the past. but the nra is a hugely powerful entity, no matter if lapierre's comments are seen a little off color or off message, they are hugely influential in washington and as pete said, they're going to be hugely involved in the lobbying battle on capitol hill if this legislation makes its way to the floor. >> asa hutchison is one of the names brought up here. should he be on the panel that vice president biden will be leading? >> he's a former member of

congress, he has sway with people on capitol hill, he's large live seen as somebody who is going to run for governor in his home state of arkansas going forward, he's still an active political figure, former members of congress tend to get more things done here in washington than some other folks but we'll see. >> they don't have to be re-elected. >> that's right. they're going to need a lot of power going forward to get lngs through. >> we heard this on friday, we heard it on sunday from lapierre. he was using the terms "good guys" fairly frequently. does that positive association he's making with police officers, of those who are trained using gun, using the terms "good guys" is that what we expect to hear for all those who are opponents of gun legislation going forward? >> i think so. i think that will be part of the conversation. but, you know, this will be a really difficult battle on capitol hill, especially in the house but also in the senate. we see a lot of democrats up nor

reelection in two years from more rural states so it might be difficult for them as well to fully embrace some of the issues being talked about or some of the policies going forward. so much we might see this in little bits of legislation. >> i was reading a number over 50% of those of the 113th who were put into office receive money from the nra. that would make things very difficult i would imagine as they are of course thinking about reelection in 2014. thank you both for your time. >> twas the night before christmas and all through the house, nothing is done. to get the dean done speaker boehner has to cross the aisle. what are the chances of that happening? you're watching a special christmas eve edition of "msnbc live." >> hi. i wanted to say hi, happy

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it's the first time that i feel that it's more likely that we will go over the cliff than not, and that -- if we allow that to happen, it will be the most colossal consequential act of congressional irresponsibility in a long time, maybe ever in american history because of the impact it will have on almost every american. >> some harsh words there from connecticut's independent senator joe lieberman on cnn over the weekend. that pessimistic tone was echoed by lawmakers on both sides of

the aisle. john yarmouth is a member of the house budget committee. he joins me live. good to see you, congressman. >> thanks. good to be with you. >> let's talk about that sentiment, if no deal is struck by next tuesday. people ma taxes will go up for everyone. you can see the numbers here, 40 to 65,000, it's $2,000 of a tax hike. so as constituents, if they were to call you and they say why is this happening, what are you going to say to them? >> well, first of all, that's not going to happen. we may go off the cliff on january 1st but we would correct that very quickly thereafter. what i'm telling them is the reason it's happening is we have

idey ideologues in the house of representatives who don't believe there's a fiscal side of the budget. they're focused on cutting spending in unprecedented ways and they don't believe in taxes essentially. on the budget committee we've seen this day in and day out. these members of the house, and i don't know how many of them there are, but at least 50 or 60 basically have established a record in which ne hathey have firmly embraced the concept of not raising taxes and serious cuts that they put themselves in a box and they really can't get out and that's really tying up everything. because we can do a deal very quickly. >> red states were saying there were about 34 of those republican members of congress who were not behind plan b, which is what i think you're alluding to. the failure of plan b, after that happened on thursday, when you're looking across the aisle and let's just get down to brass

tacks and on the ground here, as your republicans colleagues are trying to be convinced of any deal, are we really down to one-on-one negotiations? this brings us back to the senate and the health care reform bill and where all of these different ear marks and all of these different promises had to be made. this could make it very difficult if you're talking about 218 votes that are needed. >> right. well, i think it's impossible to get any kind of grand bargain, any kind of comprehensive package. i think we're dealing right now with whether or not we can put off the increase in tax rates. that's really all we can deal with right now and in some way head off the sequester of across-the-board spending cuts of about 9%. this is about john boehner's decision about whether he wants to pass something without a majority of his majority. if he wants to do that, we can do a deal and the democrats are ready to provide 190 votes for a deal that essentially raises the

rates back to clinton eras, rates on people making just over $250,000. the number is actually higher. >> what would you give on part of the 190 that might go over to work with the speaker? would you be open to means testing, for instance, for medicare? >> i don't think you make those decisions in this kind of environment if against this kind of a deadline. i think all we can do right now and i'm convinced of this, the only thing we can do is head off the rate increases for 98% of the american people. >> be more focused is it what you're saying. >> and you can't do that behind closed doors. you can't make those structural changes and entitlements without a thorough national discussion. >> i want to you listen to wyoming republican senator john barrasso. take a listen. >> when i listen to the president, i think the president is eager to go over the cliff for political purposes. i this i he sees a political victory at the bottom of the cliff. he gets all this additional tax revenue for new programs, he gets to cut the military, which

democrats have been calling for for years and he gets to blame republicans for it. >> so, congressman, are democrats overplaying how detrimental the fiscal cliff will be? as we remember, this is really more of a fiscal slope. employers have already baked in the 2011 tax rates, for instance, for january, the recession is not expected to hit for six months. is this what democrats are doing you think? >> no. i think democrats have made the case for two years now in order to deal with our fiscal situation that we need to have a balanced approach. that balanced approach has to include revenues. and the people who have done very well over the last ten years, 1% or 2% of the population, they need to contribute a little more to that restructuring of our deficit situation. so i don't think this is political at all. the politics ended on election day. the president made his case, he made it very clearly. there is no doubt as to what was

at stake in that election and the president was elected overwhelm lig. so the politics are over. now we're trying to govern the country and i think that's, at least in the house. >> congressman, i got to speak with you twice over the last several days. i appreciate your time. >> you, too. >> this video just in from the scene of a fire in the rochester, new york area. it's reported two firefighters were shot after responding to a large fire at 6:00 this morning. they encountered gun fire as they were getting out to the fire and immediately retreated. one firefighter was shot in the buttocks and is reported to be in satisfactory condition. it's believed that three houses and one vehicle are involved in that fire. residents in the area have been asked to stay in their homes

away from windows and doors. we'll keep you up to date on that story. >> over the river and through the woods, no matter how you're getting to grandma's house, we have the update on the holiday rush and the trouble spots. and a republican senator in trouble with the law. u have to. only citi price rewind automatically searches for the lowest price. and if it finds one, you get refunded the difference. just use your citi card and register your purchase online. have a super sparkly day! ok. [ male announcer ] now all you need is a magic carriage. citi price rewind. start saving at citi.com/pricerewind. of green giant vegetables it's easy to eat like a giant... ♪ and feel like a green giant. ♪

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starts with arthritis pain and a choice. take tylenol or take aleve, the #1 recommended pain reliever by orthopedic doctors. just two aleve can keep pain away all day. back to the news. >> they've been up for two nights getting their stuff together. they're school teachers and we're all set for this trip. >> just one of the many of the folks on the road, hit being ti road to see their family and friends. more than 90 million will be traveling for the holiday with the majority hitting the highway versus the sky way. in atlanta, a different background than saturday. >> well, hey there, richard. good morning. i hope christmas eve is treating you well.

it's been a little bit of a soggy morning here in atlanta. that rain has not caused many travel days here or elsewhere in the country. no reports of any major delays or cancellations in any of the major airports. yesterday this winter storm delayed a bunch of flights in san francisco. and that is something they'll have to pay attention to over the next few days. the winter storm might dump snow in the mountains and in oklahoma tomorrow. and more than 93 million americans will be traveling over the next few days. for those drivers that can avoid the snow and ice, there's some good news, gas prices are down to an average of about $3.24 a gallon, down about 20 cents sin last month. at least today air travel things are looking pretty well today. no major delays or elsewhere across the country. >> gabe gutierrez, thank you so much. here's a look at some of the

stories we're also watching for you. idaho senator mike crapo was arrested for a dui. he failed sobriety tests after running a red light. he says he's deeply sorry. >> authorities are investigating after a civilian contractor advising u.s. forces was shot dead monday in kabul, afghanistan, by a woman wearing an afghan police uniform. it appears to be the first time that a woman member of afghan security forces carried out such an attack. and the death of a seal team 4 commanding officer in afghanistan is being investigated. >> so much for a santa claus rally. the stock market is teetering on the edge of the cliff. and first susan right, now opposition to chuck hagel. stamps.com is the best.

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there we have it. that was the opening bell moments ago at the new york stock exchange, some sort of ballet group it appears. the market opened for a shortened christmas eve session. a drop of about 1% on friday. that looks like a nice holiday, festive occasion there. when we look at the concerns of the fiscal cliff and the drop of 1% of the market, let's get perspective of what to expect today. hampton, the fiscal cliffs and markets, many folks looking at their 401(k)s on friday, that dropped by a good amount. how jittery are the indices right now? >> we were poised for a negative open. futures were reporting to stocks declined even more than the 1% you mentioned. the markets like most americans, concerned about the stalemate right now on any sort of even short-term deal to avoid going over that fiscal cliff on january 1.

so no surprise the market's in negative territory. you've got the numbers right there in front of us right from the opening. now, on the flip side the markets had priced in some kind of a deal and that's why post election day we had seen the markets overall going up. but right now make no mistake about it, the fiscal cliff doubts in getting to january 1 without some kind of even a patchwork deal is what's driving the markets right now in negative territory. >> as we know, it's not a cliff, it's really a slope or series of steps as you're falling down them should a deal not come to pass here. is the drop that we've seen so far after plan b's failure, will we see yet more of the market reacting, a slow degradation of market performance? >> that depends on essentially if, for instance, a week from monday right now we're sitting here and it's almost a certainty that we're going to go over the cliff. i would argue that we could get more back to a cliff rather than slope analogy because it comes down to how swiftly does the

market react in a negative way and how swiftly is the fallout on the overall u.s. economy. for example, we're getting reports from around the country that, number one, retailers have lowered their forecast on what the christmas shopping season is going to look like. we're hearing that one of our reporters who is out at a mall today said there was a survey that bank rate that one out of three consumers they tabd have said fiscal cliff concerns are forcing them to cat back on who will spending. it's the market reaction to going over the cliff on january 1 as to whether or not we're talking about going over the cliff or that slope you mentioned. >> a santa claus rally, it's ban couple of years since we've been able to say that in our discussion. thank you. >> you got it. >> the fiscal cliff reportedly weighing on shoppers this holiday season.

consumer confidence in december hitting a five-month loaf, bloomberg reporting that online stales increased by a little more than 8% this holiday season compared with 16% this time last year. joining us now with what a the fiscal cliff means for consumers, you listened to what hampton was telling us as well, we still have some big days ahead of us in shopping. are we really going to see the sort of negative or shall we say not an increase from last year, that 8% versus 16% as we're just showing. >> on that 8 versus 16 it's 8% over a much, much higher base than the 16 was. you are going to have an slowdown of online sales. we're all shopping online. the other thing about this is of course people are worried about the fiscal cliff because that's the only thing what we're talking about on air. i don't mean to say this is a media for a washington story, i

just mean it's a story that has engendered a hume of -- it may be that we've so gamed out that negative reaction that come january 1 people will start to adjust to this new reality in a much more gradual fashion. >> and to the point you were making here, zach, average middle class tax increase would be about $2,000, unemployment will hit 9.1%, recession by the third quarter of 2013 and, again, that average middle income tax increase you would not feel immediately. many of the players have already baked in 2011 rates into 2012 rates to 2013 in january. >> those are all things being equal scenarios as if nothing happens? january 1, 2013 to december 31st, 2013.

you don't get that scenario unless congress does zero for the entire year. while that's something theoretically possible that you have this gridlock that goes nowhere forever, you've got to imagine political pressure on all sides means there will be some motion so that kind of scenario -- i prot ability of that happening is someone greater than the high wander. >> perception becoming reality, business leaders over the weekend after plan b failed saying this is a big, dower sign here that anything can happen in washington, d.c. they're key, they are clutch, they hold trillions of dollars on the shelves that they're waiting to release in capital spend beinis which will keep the economy moving. >> it's clear that businesses in terms of tlp capital spending

and hiring and investment plans will put a lot of those on hold because they need to have some clarity about just tax rates in order to plan that out. >> and other questions for businesses, it was health care reform. that's going through. the president was reelected. that's not going to be stopped. also you're seeing the fed saying i'm tying interest rates to unemployment. that's a little bit of surety, is it not? >> it makes it clear you know what the interest rate is going to be. it is clear that if you expect loch motive for economic action for the first couple of quarters of 20 13rks that's not going to happen. they're going to be in a holding pattern. what isn't in a holding pattern is this consumer activity, the house being market, which keep gradually doing better. we don't want the housing market to return to 2005/2006 and eem are feeling a little mosanguin,

but we're not in a crisis scenario, even though we're talking about it as if that were the case. >> though q1 historically has shown a down turn for all economic activity? >> sure. >> zach, i appreciate your time. >> thank you. >> at the president's first press conference after his reelection, mr. obama reminded americans that america had chosen him and his agenda over them. but republican senators essentially blocked susan right before she was ever nominated as secretary of state. now be prominent republicans are signaling troubling ahead for a fellow republicans, chuck hagel of nebraska if the president nominates him as the next defense sek. >> i don't think he's going to get me republican i like. but his positions i didn't frankly know all of them are really out of the mainstream and well to the left of the president. i think it lab challenging nomination but the hearings will

matter. >> well, the president is not getting much help from democrats either. here's senator chuck schumer answering whether he would support senator hagel's nomination. take a listen. >> i'd have to study his record. i'm not going to comment until the president makes a nomination. >> joining me now, presidential historian michael beschloss. some republicans say they go have problems with hagel's opposition to the war in iraq, that's one issue, pro--israeli groups question his stance on israel and gay rights groups have come out against comment he's made 14 years ago about gay nominees for ambassadorships saying that ambassador should represent american values. >> this is what is called a trial balloon, which is the white house puts out a name and so the president know what is kind of struggle there will be

if he sends hagel's nomination to the senate. this goes all the way back to roosevelt who started doing that, leaking those things to reporters. the question is was it necessary to put the name out to know these objections would be raised or could that have been anticipated without putting chuck hagel through this either before he is nominated or before the nomination is pulled? >> you're saying this is typical in terms of the opposition and other presidencies -- >> and if you're president, you sure would rather have a nomination pulled before it's formally made. >> trial balloon testing, is that smart? should the president -- let me go a step further. should the president get ahead of this, though, based on some of the criticisms that have already come out? >> well, and that's sort of a tip-off because i think if he were intending to go full speed ahead on this, you probably would have seen more of an effort to defend the possible hagel nomination because it's

doubly hard if the president has floated the name and then tried to defend it and then it's beaten back and he's got to pull it. so we've seen this before i guess probably the judgment call was could they have and paceth. >> we also have this as part of the data, after the election the president winning very early praise on holding his ground on the fiscal cliff. but then he was criticized by some within his own party for backing off on ambassador rice, not launching a counteroffensive, not defending her in the process. how would you grade president obama's performance in context of all the other presidents to date? >> well, there's a school of thought that when a president is beginning his second term, he'd better be assertive, especially with the senate to show that he's not going to be pushed and therefore have a stronger position going into his second term. i'm not necessarily certain that

i agree with that because i think let's say that the rice nomination has already been killed, say the hagel nomination were killed and someone else is named, 30 days ago i think people will barely remember that. >> as president obama tries to consolidate the mandate that he got from the election, what is the best way from what you have seen for him to consolidate that power and that support as he goes into his second term? >> well, i think two ways and mobilizes support for especially the controversial things he might want to do and we see prospects of that, things like gun control and other efforts of public safety that he might want

to make. but the other is especially congress these days is so fractured, you showed senator schumer, a mang democratic leader, saying there's a chance he might oppose the nomination. the president has to get in the face of the members of congress, in the way that ljb did, especially in 1965 when he passed "the great society." had he been more passive and quiet that, would not have happened. >> immigration reform is taking a back seat to the face call cliff these days, but how long will hispanics have put the president to reelection be willing to wait on that? >> i want to send a holiday greeting out to all my friends and family back if trenton ohio and the surrounding butler county. i love and miss all of you and hope to see you soon. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] this is sheldon, whose long dy setting up the news

starts with arthritis pain and a choice. take tylenol or take aleve, the #1 recommended pain reliever by orthopedic doctors. just two aleve can keep pain away all day. back to the news. president obama won

reelection this year with 71% from latinos. that's despite great disappointment among latinos that the president failed to deliver comprehensive immigration reform in his first term but the tide may be turning with the president promising a new folks on immigration after he settles the nation's precarious finances. >> good to see you and thank you for coming by, victoria. political reporting that president obama reassured latino leaders on a conference calories li -- ca -- call recently that he would focus on immigration reform. >> in the first administration

there was focus on other issues, namely make. the big but -- we're going to s mine fields on both sides of the aisle. the republicans are still of two minds when it comes to immigration reform. some of them want to see it through, think want to court latinos but you still have that tea party contingent which don't want anything except border enforcement. and then with democrats, you have some that are very pro-immigration and don't want to compromise, it's either all or nothing. even though we have the president's support, it's still going to be a long political battle. >> well, talk about that practical support. those who are immigration reform, you are right, divided government, we see it right now as we're discussing some key issues there in washington, d.c., the fiscal cliff and gun control legislation. in the senate, though, you have a couple supporters, john mccain and marco rubio. who else out there on the right might be coming after support

for immigration reform? >> i think we're also going to see folks from the border lands region, folks who have actual day-to-day experience with the reality of immigration and know we have to do something, we can't just be kicking the can down the road. the problem, though, richard is going to be with the house. this is again where the republicans have the majority and as we've been seeing with the fiscal cliff there is not a lot of wiggle room. we're going to have to see compromise. the last immigration reformabout in 1986 took both republicans and democrats working together. it can't be just a democratic lift. >> thank you victoria defrancesco soto. this is something we'll be watching over the next two to four years. >> and coming up, the controversy over keeping fast food chains open on christmas. i, it has to work. ♪ make just one someone happy

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a happy meal for a happy

holiday? well, mcdonnell's holds so. it's pushing its franchises to stay open despite a long tradition of giving its employees a break for the holiday. now some workers and customers are pushing back on that possibility. joining us now, jonathan weston of fast food forward, a group working to u.n.ize fast-food workers. jonathan, thanks for coming the day before christmas. what have you heard about this? and what are yew thoughts? >> thanks for having me. we ahead mcdonald's, who made bills onin profit last year, have decided that billions isn't enough and these profits are more important than time at home with their families over the holiday season. so employees a couple weeks ago went out on strike, hundreds of employees all over the sit over the fact that they continue to live in poverty over the wages they're giving at mcdonald's and other fast-foot restaurant while

the companies are making billions in profits and doing things like this. not even giving them holiday pay at that, let alone stay open. >> no time and a half, you say. >> no. >> what's the compromise? >> the compromise is mcdonald's needs to come clean with workers actually sit down, understand what they're going there, and. >> so raise awages. >> raise the wages, listen to workers. voluntary about these days? >> if workers are -- >> not for free, but say i will come into work that day at a given wage. >> i think workers would tell you it's more important for them to be at home with their families than to maybe 7.25 an hour that they're making this christmas. >> mcdonald's is saying they don't respond to leaked information, but did say, quote, our restaurants will be open to

serve our customers when and how they need over the holidays, end quote. what kind of pushback is the company facing based on this development? >> like we see a few weeks ago, the workers are unhappy with the working conditions at mcdonald's and restaurants around the city and workers are resisting, you know, and as we've seen, this will be another thing that pushes workers to be even more upset over the treatment of what's happening to them in the workplace and continue organizing, continue working to fight for living wages. >> when you've looked at the situation, will mcdonald's you think at any point have a change -- might say we're rethinking this? >> i'm not sure. >> you see would think after

they -- showed we're upset about the working conditions, that mcdonald's does this? they make people work? so people have to choose between going to work or spending the holidays with their families? that's not a choice workers should have to make, and mcdonald's -- they see the choice of their profits, the billions they're making is more important than their workers and their employees' time with their families. >> jonathan weston, thank you for your time today. >> okay. coming up in the next hour, does the path avoiding the cliff one through the senate? plus it's santa's big night, we're tracking the big guy's travels around the world. this is a special edition of "msnbc live." ♪

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